Forest dept earmarks area for tigers in Pilibhit

Forest dept earmarks area for tigers in Pilibhit

Neha Attre Posted online: Sunday , Jun 21, 2009 at 0504 hrs

Lucknow : To minimise conflict between wild animals and humans living on the fringes of jungles, the Uttar Pradesh Forest department has identified core and buffer areas for the proposed Pilibhit Tiger Reserve.

As per the proposal sent by the department to the state government, the core area would comprise around 600 sq km and the buffer area nearly 150 sq km. Once the proposal gets the state government nod, it will be sent to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for the final approval.

“It is necessary to have the area marked as buffer zone to avoid man-animal conflict and to accommodate the spill over of the tiger population,” said BK Patnaik, Chief Wildlife Warden of the state.

Core zone is the deeper area of forests where no human interference is allowed to help tigers live in peace, while the buffer area comprises land around the periphery of the core area.

As per the 2005 census, population of tigers in the area comprising the proposed reserve is 36. The proposal regarding the reserve was earlier sent to the NTCA but it asked the Forest department to demarcate the core and buffer area again.

According to the new proposal, the area of the reserve would be around 750 sq km as against the 712 sq km mentioned in the earlier proposal. The proposed reserve will comprise Barahi, Mala, Deoria, Mahof and Haripur areas. “The area under Shahjahapur will also be included to extend the buffer zone,” said Singh.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/forest-dept-earmarks-area-for-tigers-in-pilibhit/479406/

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